People affected by storms in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, recently received food baskets provided by volunteers of Doctors of Hope (Doutores de Esperança), along with the Adventist Development and Relief Agency (ADRA) in Brazil.

The donations were delivered to the families in the cities of Volta Redonda and Barra Mansa, in the metropolitan area of Rio de Janeiro, which had been previously registered by the Social Assistance Reference Center (CRAS, by its acronym in Portuguese).

In total, 18 tons of non-perishable food items were donated. In three days, volunteers gathered 9,000 kilos (more than 19,000 pounds) of food and the supermarket matched the same amount in donations, adding to the total of 18 tons. 

According to the coordinator of Doctors of Hope, Carlos Anderson Pereira, nearly 200 people were involved in promoting the campaign, collecting food and preparing food baskets. The City Hall of Volta Redonda offered the Olympic Arena so volunteers could organize the donations.

Group brings joy and food to those in need

Doctors of Hope began its activities in 2013, in Volta Redonda, Brazil. The initiative grew, and today they are present in Barra do Piraí and Petrópolis, in the Rio de Janeiro state and in Brasilia, capital of Brazil. 

The group visits hospitals, schools and nursing homes in order to bring people joy. They are also involved in blood and bone marrow donation campaigns. Once a month, they carry out food collections in supermarkets to donate to needy families, under the project "Hunger is not fun."